Aftermath  My Name is Harry Potter
by Ayesha Altugle
Summary: Six months after the battle with Lord Voldemort, Harry Potter reflects on some things. Oneshot?


I don't own Harry Potter

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><p><em>My name is Harry Potter.<em>

Harry pulled away from his journal, giving it a look of distaste. Hermione's idea of writing his own biography wasn't going so well. She encouraged him to at least try. Who knew his real story any better then himself? There were a lot of witches and wizards making money off his name by writing their version of Harry's Story, but what did they really know about the boy who lived?

Putting his journal away, the eighteen year old shook his head. _I won't do it. I can't. I'm not a writer. Hermione should do it. Of course she knows almost everything. Hermione and Ron were with me during all the major events in my life, though even they don't know the real me._

Did he even know the real Harry Potter? No, he didn't. He never got to grow up. He never got to have a childhood. Not normally at least. Harry snorted. What was normal about a wizard's life? Even the most mundane, boring wizard or witch led what would be considered an abnormal life to a muggle. Just the mere fact they could use magic wasn't "normal."

He was far from normal. He battled evil wizards, went on perilous adventures, watched his fellow classmates dying, his headmaster and father figure, Albus Dumbledore being killed at the hands of his most hated professor. Professor Snape-

Harry still didn't know what to think of Snape. He still killed Dumbledore, even if it was at the aging man's orders. Harry, Ron and Hermione only knew of this; they were the only ones to know who the real Professor Snape was. Ron and Hermione only knew because Harry had to tell someone what he had learned. He couldn't carry that burden alone. It was too much to think about.

At the moment, Harry was living with Ron and his family at the Burrow. Things were very quiet. Unusual for the Burrow. He knew it was because the whole house was still mourning the loss of one of their own, one of their loudest. Fred's death still shook Harry.

_He died because of me. They all died because of me. Fred, Professor Lupin, Tonks, even Colin Creevey. What was he even doing in the mist of the battle for Merlin's sake?_

Hurt that so many people he had cared about, and even people he never really thought about much had died in his name. Granted, Harry had ended Lord Voldemort's life; if you could call what Voldermort had life.

_I owe them everything. Neville Longbottom got pushed aside when everyone came rushing toward me after Voldemort died. Nobody seemed to notice the brave thing Neville did. _Harry noticed. Without Neville, he wouldn't have been able to kill Voldemort.

_Thank you Neville._

"Thank you Colin, thank you Lupin, thank you Tonks, thank you Fred, thank you so much Dumbledore and..." Harry paused, thinking hard. "Thank you professor Snape." Those words sounded strange on his lips, but he knew he meant them. Despite the fact Snape killed Dumbledore, despite the Hell Snape put Harry and his friends through year after year, despite it all.

He even owed some thanks to Malfoy's mother of all people, who had deceived Lord Voldemort, claiming Harry was dead, when in fact he wasn't. Of course, Harry knew the Malfoy's only did this for their son's sake. It was quite surprising to see how much Mr. and Mrs. Malfoy loved Draco.

Harry even felt a moment of sadness for the death of Malfoy's goon Crabbe. He never really paid any attention to Crabbe and Goyle, except when they were being bullies, but even they didn't deserve to die. Deatheaters or not. They had all been puppets of Lord Voldermort in some ways.

Picking up his journal again, Harry bit down on his bottom lip and sighed. Maybe he couldn't write his whole biography, but he could write something. He tore out a page of parchment and took his quill up.

_My name is Harry Potter._

_Some of you might think of me as a hero. Some of you might think of me a nuisance who got in the way of your once Master Lord Voldemort. I'm not a hero. Whatever side you were on during the war doesn't matter now in the aftermath. It's up to the Ministry of Magic to do with what they will to any left over followers. Not me, Harry Potter._

_I want to take this chance to mention some people worth mentioning. _

_The Weasley family for taking me in during this time. They all fought bravely during the last battle and over time people might forget of one redhead who fought a little bit harder. Fred Weasley, who was my friend, older brother figure, great mischief maker. Thank you for making me part of your family._

_Colin Creevey, I'll never understand why this muggle born worshiped me and I regret the day he took up arms. His loss might not touch many people, but it touched me. I will grieve for him and for his family, and mostly for the younger brother he left behind. Thanks Colin. Hope they have cameras in Heaven._

_Neville Longbottom, the unsung hero, really. Thank you Neville for completing the task I asked of you. You really are a __Gryffindor__, through and through. Don't forget it. _

_Ron and Hermione. My best friends. Always by my side. Even at the end when things could have ended for all of us. You're everything to me. I love you like words can't express. Thank you for all you did._

_Professor Lupin and his wife Tonks, who left behind their only son. Thank you for everything you did. You were not just my professor, I thought of you as a friend and as a father figure._

_Crabbe, yes, he might have been on the other side, but his death was uncalled for. I'm sorry you ever got dragged into this. I'm sorry for all the children of Deatheaters who got dragged into their parents battles._

_Draco Malfoy, thank your mother for me. She'll know why. Wherever you are, running from the Ministry or being held in custody, I hope you and your family can find a new passion in life._

_Professor Snape. Thank you. I'm not ready to explain why I'd thank the man who killed the greatest wizard of our time, maybe in time, the wizarding world will learn the things I know about Severus Snape. I'll mourn his death._

_Thank you Sirius Black, my Godfather and friend. Most of you know him as a murderer. He wasn't and I'm not saying more then one to blame for all those deaths years ago has already died at Voldemort's hands and he too was only a puppet being used._

_I would like to thank my aunt, uncle and cousin for giving me a place to live for seventeen years, even though they didn't have to. Though, they will never read a wizarding paper, I'm thankful to them. I didn't know enough to be thankful for them during those years. _

_Dumbledore, Hagrid, and all my professors at Hogwarts. Thank you for protecting us, even to the very end._

_There are so many others left. People I don't even know of personally, enemies who turned out not to be so bad after all, friends, teachers, house elves, owls, goblins._

_Thank you all for your part in ending the final battle._

_Remember when you see me that I'm no hero._

_~Harry Potter_

Harry stopped writing, surprised to feel his cheeks wet with tears. He hadn't been able to cry since the battle six months ago. It felt like a huge weight had been lifted off his shoulders. The dam had broke. He cried, not embarrassed to let his emotions through, grateful and relieved he was finally able to let it out.

When he finished sobbing, he wiped his eyes and then tucked the roll of parchment into his trouser pockets. He considered what wizard paper to send it to, but he realized, it had really been a letter to himself.

For the first time in six months, Harry smiled.

_Fin_


End file.
